Hanuman Beniwal, the chief of the Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) and the MP from Rajasthan’s Naguar, wrote a letter on Monday, 30 November, to Union Home Minister Amit Shah alleging that his party will reconsider its place in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) if the recently passed farm laws are not withdrawn by the central government.
In a tweet addressed to Amit Shah, Beniwal asked the Centre to withdraw the three contentious farm laws, saying, "Mr Amit Shah, in view of the countrywide sentiment in support of the ongoing farmers' movement, the recently introduced three bills related to agriculture should be immediately withdrawn. (The Centre must) implement all recommendations of the Swaminathan Commission, and immediately hold dialogue with farmers in Delhi.”
Beniwal wrote in his letter to Amit Shah, who is also the NDA chairperson, that "It is requested to take immediate action to withdraw the laws. Even during the severe winter and corona period, the farmer is agitating on roads which is not good for governance," he said, reported news agency IANS.
He said the Acts were clearly not in the interest of farmers. “Though the RLP is a constituent party of the NDA, its strength lies in Kisan [farmers] and Jawan [soldiers]. If prompt action is not taken in this matter, we will have to rethink about our alliance in the interest of farmers”, he added, reported IANS.
The RLP’s threat comes after the Bharatiya Janata Party’s oldest ally Shiromani Akali Dal broke away from the party and NDA over the passage of the farm laws in September.
We Are With the Farmers: Beniwal
Beniwal has been making a series of strong remarks against the Centre on social media the past week saying that he has given his “last warning” to BJP through his letter, reported The Hindu.
He said on Twitter, “We are with the farmers and [will] march to Delhi, if required. The Prime Minister and Mr Shah should hold talks with the farmers and provide them space to hold dharna in the Capital. If any kind of ill-treatment is done with them, the farmers of the entire country will be on streets and will lay siege to Delhi,”
Beniwal urged governments of neighbouring states such as Haryana to not adopt the farmer laws hinting that he would join the lakhs of protesting farmers from Rajasthan.
"If the police and governments adopted oppressive policy against farmers, the RLP will hold demonstrations across the country, including Rajasthan, in favour of farmers," he had said on Thursday, reported The Hindu.
The BJP has asserted that the farmers are being misled by Opposition parties, but the farmers have insisted that theirs is an independent movement. They said that the government should have approached them with "an open heart" and shouldn't have placed conditions, reported NDTV.
Farmer bodies will begin protests in other states on 1 December
(With inputs from NDTV, The Hindu and IANS)
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